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Due process
The guarantee of due process requires that no person be deprived of life, liberty, or property without a fair and adequate process. In criminal proceedings (as well as juvenile) this guarantee includes the fundamental aspects of a fair trial, including the right to adequate notice in advance of the trial, the right to counsel, the right to confront and cross-examine witnesses, the right to refuse self-incriminating testimony, and the right to have all elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt
Circumstantial evidence
All evidence of an indirect nature. Testimony not based on actual personal knowledge or observation of the facts in controversy.
Bail
In criminal cases, a sum of money posted by or on behalf of a defendant to guarantee his appearance in court after being released from jail
Hearsay
Second-hand evidence, generally consisting of a witness's testimony that he/she heard someone else say something.
Public defender
In a civil tort action such as a medical malpractice suit, the plaintiff must show that an act or omission of the defendant was a proximate cause of the plaintiff's injury or loss. Similarly, in a criminal action, the state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant's action was the direct cause of the crime
Bind over
A judge's decision to hold a criminal defendant for trial.
Termination of parental rights
A judicial proceeding freeing a child from all custody and control by parents, so the child can be adopted by others.
Incest
The crime of sexual intercourse between a male and a female who are so closely related they would not legally be allowed to marry.
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